Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern and some Grand Bazaar

31 July 2014

The Blue Mosque is considered a must see for visitors to the old part of Istanbul. It was comissioned by Sultan Ahmet I, who did not have any great wars won, so decided to use the treasury fund and built a mosque to rival Aya Sophya. They are both buildings to fill visitors with awe, although Aya Sophya broke ground architecturally (with a dome that appears to be unsupported)  while the Blue Mosque did not. What Blue Mosque does have, though are six minarets-- and at the time it was built, the only other mosques with this many were in Mecca.To avoid the accusation of being presumptuous, he donated an additional minaret for Mecca.

What is interesting about visiting is that this is a working mosque, so people attend prayer there several times a day. Visitors are only permitted to stay in one section and have a strict dress code. I did pass muster on the head scarf, but my dress was too short (even though it hit below the knee) so I was handed a cloth to wear to cover my legs. Mark did much better passing muster-- he only had to take off his hat.

The name Blue Mosque comes from the tile, which did not photograph well in the dark and distance. The carpet did though, and apparently the repeating pattern helps observers to orient for pray and equal spacing.

Mark and I usually like to see religious spaces as they are used by the people who worship there, if we can. This visit had so many tourists, and so much hustle to get ready to enter, it didn't really feel contemplative, though.

We walked to see the Basilica Cistern next. This was an excellent choice in the hot afternoon. The Cistern was engineered to hold tons of water underground in the Justinian time and Topkapki Palace also used the water. It is beautiful and eery-- the ceiling is held up by reclaimed Roman columns and they reflect in the water so it looks like they go on forever. Two of the columns have Medusa heads as their bases--and the heads are set upside down and sideways. No one knows where they were recycled from (hard to advertise for a missing Medusa.) They were probably placed upside down and sideways for the superstitious reason that looking at Medusa can turn one to stone.

We are going to watch From Russia with Love again when we get home. Sean Connery chases someone through the cistern in that movie. This was definitely a visit that made us think of the boys back home.

We visited Hagia Irene which was the church built in honor of peace (Sophya was for wisdom.) It's ironic, though, that although the Ottomans left if standing, it because used as an armory and as a storehouse for the spoils of war. We had the place to ourselves and it is cool and damp and far from what must have been splendid in its day. It does have a peaceful use now-- because of its acoustics, it is used as a concert hall.

Late in the day, we finally shopped the Grand Bazaar. There is no seeing it all, and the kiosks get repetitious. We did barter when we made a purchase. I would never separate from a party and arrange to meet-- and I feel sorry for any small child that gets separated from a parent! Anyone who knows how to shop there, though,  must have incredible fun.

The holiday is over and the ratio of local tourists to international tourists has shifts toward the international.There is a different feel to the city today as people went back to work, and more of the many apparel stores near our hotel were open. They have interesting names like "Discover Underwear," and "Ano Domini," and "The Call Chop." Being a trade center of civilization for so long really shows here.

Topkapi Palace

30 July 2014

One palace, our entire day? Yes, and we didn't even see the whole of it.

 Top corner of divan in the sultan's private room in the haram.

The sultan Mehmet II, known as the conquer, built Topkapi between 1459-1465. The sultans who followed added on, all the way up to the ninteenth century. (Topkapi was "abandoned" in 1853 by Sultan Abdul Mecit I who moved to a palace across the Bosphorus.) It's a complex-- not a building. An awful lot of the culture of being a sultan is avoiding people. Viziers did the face-to-face. If heads of state visited, an anteroom was decorated and the sultan sat inside and saw the gifts presented at a window. When important domestic matters were discussed, the vizier sat in another part of the complex while the sultan sat one floor above and listened through a window grill.

 Window grille above the vizier's place.

 The most famous part of the palace is the harem where all the women lived-- perhaps fours wives and then many concubines. Concubines could not be Muslim because it is against the religion to take a believer into slavery. Any of of the male children could rise to be the next sultan-- it depended on which mother was the most in favor, and also, I guess, who survived the palace plotting and assassinations.

Even as old as it is, and in need of even more preservationn and restoration,the interiors of the rooms are very pleasing to the eye. Many rooms have domed ceilings, so they were light and colorful. Walls are all tiled and the hues are still vibrant and complimentary. They are repetitive and have symmetry. When seeing 'old' buildings in North America and Western Europe, many interiors that were colorful have faded over time and seem dark. Tile color has stood the test of time and seems like new. When we walked into an interior we tried to imagine what it would have looked like with carpeted floors-- there would have been patterns absolutely everywhere then-- like being dropped into an exponential kaleidoscope!

The lines were so, so long to see the treasury and the relics, that we diverted, ate lunch in view of the Bosphorus, and spent a longer time in less popular buildings. We outlasted the crowds by looking at portraits of the sultans. There was no one in that gallery, and if you ask me, the last two sultans look worried in their frames.

By 5:00pm we saw hoards leaving and zigged while they zagged.  Therefore, we have seen the treasury-- jewel encrusted everything: water flasks, turban jewels, writing boxes, and thrones. Gifts of medallions from other empires: France, Britian, Iran, Saudi Arabia. One of the fanciest thrones was made just 200 years before the Ottoman Empire fell.

What we missed were the relics. The lines to see the staff of Moses and the beard hairs of the prophet, among others, was not shortening at all, so we departed in search of dinner.

We had dinner on a terrace and it was cooked in a clay pot that was cracked open at the table. We also shared meze-- the original dips (like hummus, eggplant, yogurt with cucumber and salt-- they are terrific, especially when it is hot outside.)

After dinner we walked around the hippodrome with thousands of other people. The marker where the chariots turned the corner still stands. It is not quite as tall since the ground has been built up around it over the centuries, but it is as close as I have come to those ancient races. And almost no one else was looking at it-- even though there were thousands of people strolling through the hippodrome and the plaza in front of the Blue Mosque.  As we returned to the trolley, we also stumbled upon the milion-- the stone marker that indicated distances to parts of the Roman empire!

Aya Sofya and Archaeology

29 July 2014
Our first stop was Aya Sofya, it's Turkish name, but also seen as Hagia Sophia, it's Orthodox name. As a sanctified space, we can't call it a church, cathedral or mosque,but it has been all of those since 537. The land it sits on has been used for a church since the year 360.

Little cat in the corner of one door leading from the former narthex to the sanctuary.

Aya Sofya's long history makes it interesting and compelling to many,many visitors. The space itself feels as familiar as any large cathedral or basilica.  But the orientation of some of the interiors were angled toward Mecca when the building became a mosque. Islam does not show faces in art so the mosaics were covered up, although with plaster and pieces of them have been restored. They must have been incredible since the gold backgrounds on the pieces that exist still have a glow. The dome overhead is the most impressive because it is light inside and the dome is 184 ft high. There are huge Ottoman medallions that look new (they aren't) and so it is possible to see Islam calligraphy and Christian pictures side by side in the space. 

Difficult to photograph from my distance and small camera.

Medallion on right and mosaic on left.

 

A couple from Pakistan (they'd actually been to Woodstock NY!) who we shared a hired guide with thought that this side-by-side of two major faiths was most significant. Our guide spend much time on the tour focusing Mark and I on Islam and how much he wanted peace. He also gave Mark a pocket size English copy of the Koran.

Last amazing view for this part of our day: There are stones from the ruins of the older buildings the predated the current Aya Sophya and they are just collected into areas on the grounds and people walk among them and sit on them This just amazed us! Ancient artifacts are so rare in the States, this seems so cavalier!

We spend the afternoon at the archeological museum-- parts of it at least. We took a look at the Troy exhibit since we are heading there next week.

Back for a dip in the roof top pool with amazing views of minarets and then we went back to the old city for dinner.

The streets are packed in the old part of the city, but many shops (and there are more shops here than anywhere I have ever been) are closed. Eid is still being celebrated. We had a slow meal at a restaurant that cooked food in the style from Ankara. I loved my eggplant and lamb dish, but the waiter told me I would have to come back to his restaurant or else go to Ankara if I ever wanted to have it again.

Our tram ride back was full of humanity-- actually, it was just full of humans. Three trams came and went before we were able to squeeze on one. I was surrounded by men in their 20's, all strap hangers. One had his plastic bag of take-out dinner on his wrist which kept banging into my ear. Mark looked down and said, "That's sort of in in your way..."--well, not more than all the arm pits around me. I could barely keep a straight face.

 

Arriving in Istanbul

 July 28,2014

 We're here! We have the jet lagged feeling of having pulled an all nighter, coupled with, as usual, not much sleep on the plane.

Once in Istanbul, though, this has been one of the easiest countries to enter. Quick, multi-tasking immigration officer, and no one really cared at customs. Our driver found us-- poor guy had been waiting two hours because our flight was so delayed.

Today is Eid, the end of Ramadan. It is a family visiting day and the streets around our hotel are very, very quiet.  After we unpacked (twice because our first room has a heavy smoker next door), we stepped out in our disorientation to find some dinner.

My first hours in another country always make me feel like I am watching a movie instead of living my life. This afternoon was no exception. When everything is unfamiliar, two things happen at once.  The brain finds ridiculous reference points (I keep reading the word Fatih (a municipality in Istanbul)  as "fath," for example.) And, almost nothing gets screened out. We were lucky that today is a holiday and so quiet. There was less to take in since so few people are on the streets.

 We are staying near The Prince's Mosque. We heard the call to prayer when we were at our early dinner. Service continued although they turned off the music and it seemed quieter all around.

Our neighborhood is filled with textile stores-- drapery, clothing and lots of shoe stores. The shoe stores were open even into this evening, for some reason,  but little else.

We probably will not ever get used to the ancient side by side with the new.

Blogger is giving me directions in Turkish-- not very helpful-- and I am hoping this will post in English.